Myopia Prevalence Screening Data from Southern China, 2018-2021

20,750 students aged 5–18 years from Southern China were screened for myopia between 2018 and 2021. Ningfeng Li authored this serial cross-sectional study comparing two diagnostic criteria: spherical equivalent refraction alone versus combined with uncorrected visual acuity. The combined criterion consistently yielded lower prevalence estimates, revealing a 15–21% annual relative overestimation by the simpler method.

Use Cases

• Compare myopia prevalence estimates based on spherical equivalent refraction versus combined refraction and visual acuity criteria.
• Analyze age-stratified trends in myopia prevalence, particularly the severe overestimation in young children.
• Investigate gender differences in myopia prevalence from age 10 onwards.
• Model the acceleration in myopia prevalence observed in children aged 7–10 years between 2019 and 2020.

Strengths

• 20,750 student records provide a substantial sample size.
• Data spans four years (2018–2021), allowing for temporal trend analysis.
• Age-stratified analysis from 5 to 18 years enables detailed demographic breakdowns.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data may reflect geographic bias inherent to its collection in Southern China.

Provenance

Source

Ningfeng Li

Collection Method

Serial cross-sectional study using non-cycloplegic measurements.

Time Range

2018–2021

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-19 05:17:27; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Southern China